noun
nimbus
A dark cloud that produces rain.
A dark nimbus hangs over the valley and releases steady rain.
Etymology
The Latin word names a rain cloud. Meteorological use retains that direct meaning for a cloud associated with precipitation.
More examples
- Rain falls from a nimbus above the lake.
- The wind pushes the nimbus east as rain soaks the fields.
- Several nimbi gather overhead, sending rain onto the rooftops.
Forms
nimbus · nimbi · nimbuses
Similar words
- rain cloud
- The everyday term, without the technical tone of nimbus.
- nimbostratus
- Specifically a broad, layered cloud that produces steady precipitation.